Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker easily defeated businessman and former U.S. Rep. Mark Neumann on Tuesday in the Republican primary for governor, setting the stage for his long-awaited battle with Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett in the Nov. 2 general election.

Barrett faced a nominal challenge in his primary and easily defeated Tim John of Oconomowoc, owner of a company that prints religious calendars.

Their victories guarantee voters in November will elect a governor from Milwaukee County for the first time in 70 years.

Walker was the early favorite among Republicans after building a broad grass-roots organization that took seed five years ago when he first mounted a run for governor. He dropped out of that race to clear the way for then-U.S. Rep. Mark Green of Green Bay, who went on to lose to Gov. Jim Doyle.

In the campaign this year, Walker quickly garnered the support of nearly all the major Republicans, and his brown bag-themed campaign preaching limited government and job creation resonated with primary voters.

But Walker, 42, of Wauwatosa, faced a forceful challenge from Neumann, 56, a Nashotah home builder and real estate developer who pumped more than $4 million of his personal wealth into the race and touted his experience in business as the best attribute of the next governor.

Flanked by his wife, Tonette, and sons Matt and Alex, Walker spoke in a hoarse voice but was energized by his supporters.

"Because of this primary we are tested and we are ready to take on the liberals in Madison," Walker told his supporters at American Serb Hall in Milwaukee.

Walker made a pitch to lure Neumann supporters in the fall elections, telling them: "We have a lot in common. We each want to stop the Doyle disaster and we each want to put the government back in the hands of the people."

Neumann conceded to a group of about 50 supporters at the Milwaukee Marriott West in Waukesha. At the same time, his campaign issued a statement saying he was endorsing Walker.

Standing next to his wife, Sue, Neumann said he hoped some of the ideas of his campaign, crystalized in a 210-page book, would be picked up by Walker and Barrett. "And if that happens, something good will have come out of this campaign," he said.

Barrett cruised to an easy victory in the Democratic primary.

"My focus will remain, as it has from Day One, on doing everything I can to create, retain and attract jobs in the state of Wisconsin, and at the same time putting state government on a diet," Barrett said in a telephone interview from his victory party at the Winnebago County Democratic Party headquarters in Oshkosh.

Turning up the heat

After spending months on the campaign trail talking about Barrett, Walker in the last two weeks turned his attention to Neumann, which observers pointed to as a sign the race had tightened. But with most of the votes counted late Wednesday, Walker had a wide lead.

Walker used radio and TV ads, as well as postcards targeted to primary voters, to rip Neumann for votes he took in Congress and to compare him to Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California. Some said the Pelosi dig was a good way for Walker to distinguish himself from Neumann, but others said the ad campaign wasn't credible because Neumann and Pelosi are ideological opposites.

One of Walker's first orders will be to gear up his fund-raising machine. As of the end of August, Barrett had twice as much money as Walker - $2.6 million compared with $1.2 million - and Walker has had to spend heavily in the last week to defeat Neumann, who largely financed his own campaign.

Barrett has been spending money on his own ads, but he was able to stash away more cash than Walker because he did not have a strong primary challenger.

Walker and Neumann differed little on major issues in the race, with both promising deep tax cuts and stopping a planned high-speed rail line from Milwaukee to Madison. They framed their differences on experience, with Walker saying he has a proven record of limiting the role of government and Neumann saying he would apply his business sense to slowing state spending.

Walker served nearly nine years in the Legislature before he was elected Milwaukee County executive in the midst of a pension scandal. Neumann served four years in Congress and then went back to the private sector after losing a 1998 challenge to U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold.

Tuesday's Republican primary, which also featured Scott Paterick of Wisconsin Rapids, was the first heavily contested GOP primary for governor since 1986, when Tommy G. Thompson emerged from a three-way race and went on to win the general election.

Walker and Barrett - the two top public officials in Milwaukee County - will spend the next seven weeks trying to earn votes in a climate that, across Wisconsin and the country, has Democrats worried and Republicans giddy. Jobs and the economy are sure to dominate the campaign.

On the economy, Walker and Barrett have both trumpeted what they would do to invigorate Wisconsin, with Walker calling for tax cuts and a freeze on property taxes and Barrett calling for tax credits for businesses that create jobs.

Wisconsin's governorship has been a top target for both parties, with groups aligned with each side running ads to disparage Walker or Barrett. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama, who has helped Barrett raise money, has visited Wisconsin three times since June and is scheduled to hold a Madison rally on Sept. 28.

Wisconsin's race for governor is the first one in 28 years that doesn't feature an incumbent.

The Walker-Barrett matchup also means the state is on track to elect its first governor from Milwaukee County since Gov. Julius Heil left office after serving from 1939 to 1943.

More recently, Martin Schreiber of Milwaukee served as acting governor in 1977, after Democratic Gov. Patrick Lucey left office early for an ambassadorship. Schreiber was followed by Republican Lee Sherman Dreyfus, who was born and raised in Milwaukee but had not lived there for more than three decades when he was elected in 1978.

Contributing to this report were Journal Sentinel reporters Bill Glauber in Milwaukee and John Fauber in Waukesha.

About Patrick Marley

Patrick Marley covers state government and state politics. He is the author, with Journal Sentinel reporter Jason Stein, of "More Than They Bargained For: Scott Walker, Unions and the Fight for Wisconsin.”